You are here

(08/03/2009) - ATLANTA - Today's decision by the U.S. Navy to proceed with construction of its
Undersea Warfare Training Range without first obtaining the required approvals
for the whole project located near the only known calving grounds for endangered
right whales attempts an end run around environmental protections, according to
public interest groups. The groups concerned by today’s decision include
Defenders of Wildlife, Earthjustice, The Humane Society of the United States,
Natural Resources Defense Council, and the Southern Environmental Law
Center.

Announced today, the Navy’s plans would begin construction of the range at a
site adjacent to the North Atlantic right whale calving grounds and in a
protected area for commercially valuable snapper-grouper. Yet, the Navy has not
completed surveys of whales in the area and not obtained authorization from the
National Marine Fisheries Service for its operations on the range.

“The Navy’s decision to pass off an undersea warfare training range as just a
construction project is an obvious dodge of environmental protections for right
whales and commercially valuable marine life,” said Catherine Wannamaker, an
attorney with Southern Environmental Law Center that has been closely monitoring
the process for over three years. “Proceeding with construction locks in public
funds and location before the range is evaluated and approved for ship traffic,
sonar, and debris near the only known nursery for right whales and within areas
critical to commercially valuable marine life.”

Last year, the groups submitted comments to the U.S. Navy outlining concerns
regarding the proposed Undersea Warfare Training Range on behalf of 22 public
interest nonprofits. As part of the planned training, Navy ships – exempt from
speed restrictions recently implemented by the government to protect endangered
right whales – would pass through the calving ground when traveling between the
bases and proposed training area. The Navy plans to conduct 470 annual exercises
on the training range with up to three vessels and two aircraft engaged in
simulated warfare. Ships and aircraft would travel to the range from
Mayport, FL, and Kings Bay, GA.

Ship strikes are the single largest cause of death for right whales. During
2006, five whales were killed or injured by ship strikes or entanglements in an
endangered population. Low flying aircraft are also a source of harassment to
right whale mothers and calves which use these shallow, calm waters as a nursing
ground each winter.

The Navy’s plans include deployment of non-explosive exercise torpedoes,
target submarine simulators, and various forms of active and passive sonar. An
assortment of debris will be introduced into the area and left behind as a
result of training activities, including 3,000 sonobuoys per year, exercise
torpedoes and control wires, parachute assemblages, and ballast.

Entanglements are another known cause of death for endangered right whales
and sea turtles. According to scientists, approximately 10 to 30 percent of the
right whale population is entangled each year. Once entangled, animals have
trouble eating, breathing or swimming, all of which can have fatal results.

Ingestion of marine debris traveling the ocean’s currents and littering
beaches is also a known, potentially fatal threat to endangered sea turtles.

According to its own documents, environmental impacts were not part of the
Navy’s criteria in selecting a site for its warfare training range. Despite the
state of Georgia’s objection to the proposal and concerns raised by
environmental groups and the state of Florida, the Navy rejected numerous
recommended measures that could have lessened the environmental impact of its
activities. Although the Navy does not plan to use sonar within the critical
habitat, it has not proposed any mitigation for sonar likely to travel from the
training range into the calving ground during the calving season.

While the Navy states that construction will not take place during the
calving season, the Record of Decision does not analyze the impacts of
operations on the range to right whales and other endangered species. Before the
full project can proceed and operations can begin, the U.S. Navy must receive a
letter of authorization from the National Marine Fisheries Service for
harassment of these species.

Comments by the groups follow.

"There is no room for error with right whales," said Sierra Weaver, attorney
for Defenders of Wildlife. "Rather than push forward with a decision based
on limited information and limited analysis about possible effects to this
species, the Navy needs to go back and do it right."

“The Navy selected the worst possible site for this range. These waters are
home to a stunning array of biodiversity, including some of the ocean’s most
threatened creatures: the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale, blue
whales, and leatherback and loggerhead sea turtles,” said Katie Renshaw, an
attorney with Earthjustice. “Before this project goes any further, we need to
know how it will affect these animals. That’s the law.”

"It is irresponsible of the Navy to overlook the risk that the construction
and operation of this project poses to endangered whales and sea turtles," said
Sharon Young, field director of The HSUS.

"The Navy's plan to build a sonar training range next to right whale critical
habitat without incorporating relevant survey data into its decision is like
building a house next to a river without checking to see if it’s in the
floodplain - potentially disastrous,” said Taryn Kiekow, attorney, Natural
Resources Defense Council. “The Navy has fast-tracked the planning process for
the range, and in the process disregarded environmental laws designed to
prohibit this from happening."

Defenders of Wildlife is dedicated to the protection of all native animals and plants in their natural communities. With more than 1 million members and activists, Defenders of Wildlife is a leading advocate for innovative solutions to safeguard our wildlife heritage for generations to come. For more information, visit www.defenders.org.

You may also be interested in:

The Florida Panhandle is one of the most biologically diverse regions of the world. From dense pine forests, seepage streams and major rivers, to coastal marshes and pristine beaches, it is home to a wide array of key and endangered species, including gopher tortoises, sea turtles, manatees, red-cockaded woodpeckers, eastern indigo snakes, migratory birds and numerous species of fresh water mussels.